The Downside
I consider the Lexicon MC-12 HD to be quite a well-rounded product, but
I also consider a car like the Ferrari 599 to be practical. This said,
there is a lot about the Lexicon MC-12 HD that isn’t going to sit well
with many consumers trudging through the home theater marketplace. For
instance, it doesn’t up-convert analog video signals to digital, nor
does it scale video to 1080p/24. However, it gets around this in two
ways by offering you more HDMI inputs than you’re likely to need right
now, even if you have three different HD disc spinners and a DVR, by
letting your respective players do all the video trickery if need be.

It doesn’t have support for the latest uncompressed multi-channel audio
formats, although Lexicon has assured me that they’re working on it.

The remote isn’t as flashy as I felt it should be for a product costing
as much and looking as good as the Lexicon MC-12 HD does, but it is
functional and does work, even outside of line of sight in some cases.

Lastly, it’s not the greatest audiophile processor you’re going to
find, although I can’t imagine many customers truly listening to music
through the MC-12 HD, for they’re bound to have entire systems
dedicated to that already. Like I said, the Lexicon MC-12 HD is
purpose-built, you’re buying it for your dedicated home theater, and as
a dedicated piece, it is wonderful.

Conclusion
The Lexicon MC-12 HD isn’t for everyone; it isn’t even for most people.
It’s for the select few, the connoisseurs, the ones who never consider
price to be an object, but merely the means to an end. And what an end
the Lexicon MC-12 HD can deliver, so long as you understand what it is
that you’ve bought. As a cost-no-object home theater processor, the
Lexicon MC-12 HD is phenomenal. It will transport you in ways you can’t
imagine and do so in such a sublime and natural fashion that it makes
all other processors sound harsh and over-produced in comparison. When
it comes to movies, the Lexicon MC-12 HD is pretty much as good as it
gets if you’re serious about creating a top of the line performing home
theater that also just happens to reside in your home.